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O2 chief executive Ronan Dunne is exploring a debt-fuelled £8.5bn management buyout attempt following the collapse of CK Hutchison’s takeover bid for the mobile operator, The Daily Telegraph can reveal.

The Irishman, 52, has been approached in recent weeks by potential private equity sponsors aiming to carry out what would be the largest UK leveraged buyout since before the financial crisis. Executives at O2’s Berkshire headquarters are running the numbers to weigh whether it would be feasible for Mr Dunne, who has led O2 for eight years and previously served as its chief financial officer, to take it independent, sources said.

The discussions, which are in their early stages after the European...